


true or false? magic is easier than love

by VioletTea



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Developing Relationship, Gryffindor Mark Lee (NCT), M/M, Slytherin Lee Donghyuck | Haechan, also very minor jaedo, just a wip for fun, no actual romantic one tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-30
Updated: 2019-08-30
Packaged: 2020-09-26 20:38:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20395807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VioletTea/pseuds/VioletTea
Summary: How did Mark meet Donghyuck?With a face full of slime at the Great Hall, of course.Mark's first impression of Donghyuck was less than impressive to say the least.





	true or false? magic is easier than love

**Author's Note:**

> I have always wanted to write a harry potter au and now i did it (even if it is kind of cliche at this point)
> 
> yay

“Mark,” Someone yells, breaking the said person out of focus. He was sure the silencing spell on his AirPods was still working since last week. Mark should probably fix it soon if he wants to prepare for the O.W.L.s. Even though it's in June, he hasn’t looked at anything magic-related for the entire summer and...

“Mark,” He hears louder and more tired than the first time. The voice was familiar, Wooseok maybe? But before Mark can answer back, a hand pushes his head down into his book and a wand pokes his cheek. 

Mark takes out one of his AirPods and tries to push the person off, but no matter how much he tried to lift his head, he gets pushed right back down.

“Didn’t I tell you not to wear the... the...ear things again? Anyways, the Heads are planning some type of event in the next hour and all the fifth, sixth, and seventh years have to come.”

What’s happening now, Mark wonders. Hogwarts wass so...strange sometimes. He wouldn't find it shocking if Headmaster Lee planned something new to try to keep the “magical aura” of the school alive.

“I have an hour don’t I," Mark asks with a raised eyebrow. “Why did you have to scream too? You know I can’t hear with these.”

Wooseok laughs as big and hearty as him. “Yoonoh asked me to.” 

“Jaehyun asked you to tell me?” 

Now, Mark doesn't understand.

Wooseok shrugs, his broad shoulders lifting his robe with ease. “I am only the messenger. He is at the common room waiting right now.”

He yells out a bye, a piercing kind of yell that shocks Mark’s ears for a second, and dashes out the door before Mark can question him any further. So much for being a prefect.

Mark slams his textbook shut, his essay scroll peeking out like the tongue of a snake, and hurries to set the quill back into its tiny pot. It doesn’t slip in with one easy try and it takes him a few more tries before the feather dips into the sample ink pot. His essay wasn’t going to be due until winter break begins, but he should be able to finish it before the event starts. It’s not like Mark had much to do anyway. 

Mark walks to the Common Room, his cloak’s sleeves awkwardly bouncing at his arms and hair a bit messy at the edges. When he opens the door, his nose is immediately hit by vanilla perfume and the musty old carpet. The old carpet smell he got used to in the same way he got used to the smoldering firewood that lingers at every edge of their common room. The vanilla was new

Jaehyun was lounging on the couch, a book in his hands, completely undeterred by the odd scent in the air.

“You called for me?”

“Hi, soulmate,” Jaehyun greets, yawning as he sits up from the couch. The Head Boy ushers him to the seat beside him and then spells the book back into the shelf, a spell Mark knew was far too slick for his uncontrollable powers.

“Did Wooseok tell you about what the other prefects are doing,” Jaehyun huffs out when Mark plops down on the woolen couch.

“Yeah. Are you not involved with it?”

Jaehyun laughs with a cold bite and brushes his bangs out of his forehead out of habit. “God, no. I don’t talk about this stuff. The rest are planning to have a meeting for a dance.”

“All of a sudden?” Ever since the Ministry permanently discontinued the Triwizard Tournament, there has been no ball or dance like the Yule Ball. Mark wasn’t sure if the Durmstrangs or the Beauxbatons still had any dances, but he found it unlikely. The schools have visited Hogwarts and on their lists of brags, a dance of any kind was never mentioned.

Jaehyun hums and lets his dyed pink-brown head fall on the curved headrest. He is silent as he gets back up, running his fingers in his fading hair. It’s a short second, but Mark can’t help but shake his wrists.

“Something for the first years to be nervous about I guess.” 

Jaehyun was distracted. Though Mark was not known for being incredibly perceptive, Jaehyun was easy to read. Mark was the lucky few who saw his underlying softness and the cool front of the top duelist of Hogwarts was a joke between Jaehyun’s friends. 

Jaehyun's eyes were on the vase of dead flowers on the bookshelf and his fingers rubbed his chain bracelet. Must be Doyoung again. It usually was. Mark can see Jaehyun’s eyes droop further and further the more he stares at the less-than-yellow tulips.

“Are you gonna ask him to go?”

Last school year in June, the older, former Slytherin student graduated to Scale Creek College-- one of the most prestigious witchcraft colleges in the world-- and Jaehyun has been looking miserable since. Mark knew their relationship was somewhat romantic, but he never realized how reliant Jaehyun was to Doyoung emotionally. He remembered he saw them hanging out a few times on their own, but he guesses it must be what Yeri would call the “honeymoon” phase.

Luckily, Doyoung’s name had an instantaneous effect. Jaehyun perks up in a snap and Mark tries not to laugh at how right puppy-like Jaehyun was. Doyoung’s words, not his.

Jaehyun reminds him to come to the meeting one more time, his right dimple digging deeper than a pick in mud, before running up the stairs to his dorm.

Mark waits a moment, blinking on the couch in the early evening dusk that made the red and gold room glow pink. That and the weird vanilla was making his entire brain foggy.

Now, did he have to do again? Wasn’t it...? 

Oh. His AirPods, Mark remembers. 

When his parents first gave him the AirPods, they forgot the whole ‘no technology ban’ in Hogwarts. Desperate to put his parents’ hundreds of dollars to use, Mark casted a charm onto the AirPods. He re-used the same charm for a project later that month and Professor Kim was more than impressed.

After re-charming the AirPods, which Mark notes to have a bi-monthly pattern instead of his previous monthly one, he puts them back into the case and rushes to the Common Room, reminding everyone else to go to the Great Hall.

People trickle into the hall in groups, laughing or whispering as they enter the Great Hall’s doors. The House tables were half full at most. Without the younger years, many of the seats were left empty and some tables were even abandoned. Nobody really cared though. 

Before the meeting began, Mark ended up making small talk with someone from his dorm, but only because he didn’t have anyone close to talk to. Mark's friends were scattered in other tables and many were also from other houses. He was left alone with the people in his dorm and frankly, he can’t remember the last time he talked to them. Most of the time Mark would just have his AirPods on, doing work or was out wandering in this school, hoping to find something new.

Mark re-learned why he didn’t enjoy talking to his roommates. Their conversations were suffocating and the awkward pauses in between topics left Mark pressing his nails into his palms in cringe. It wasn’t because of the boy really or any of the others, but Mark wasn’t heavily interested in wizard bands and the latest public stunt at Diagon Alley. 

His relief came early luckily. Jihyo, the Head Girl of the Hufflepuff house, stomped at the front of the tables and the little conversations that sprung up moments ago ceased. She clears her throat and beams at everyone before speaking, her eyes burning with power.

“We are here to discuss the upcoming dance which will be the first student-run event in some time. We were instructed to be very meticulous with every detail and we have already selected our prefects and head boys and girls to be the party board by lottery. Our theme has not been decided, but we, the heads, agreed to allow the upper years to vote on it rather than just the board. We have selected 6 suitable themes...”

Students burst into murmurs before she can continue and the sound only increases as each second passes. Mark was sure the themes were going to be lame, but dressing outside of the Hogwarts uniform was more fun than he expected. He should probably jot down the themes or he would end up like last year.

Eventually, the Head Girls and Boys get tired of waiting. Mina, the other Hufflepuff Head, flicks her wand elegant as per usual and an ear-splitting scream in the hall slices through the air.

The hall finally returns to peace and Jihyo takes back the metaphorical mic.

“The themes are Classic Ballroom, Halloween, Underwater Monster, Astrology or Galaxies, Masquerade, and Muggle.”

Immediately whispers broke the air again and many muggle-borns and some half-bloods share a wrinkled look of confusion.

“Why is Muggle a theme?” Mark asks, speaking out amidst the sprouting conversations. Somehow, Jihyo hears him and her eyes catch his own as if they were magnets. 

“It’s not what you think...Mark is it?”

Mark nods and Jihyo smiles a little larger than before, teeth sharper under the candlelight. He tries not to swallow, his will shrinking with each passing thought. But she answers without a

“The theme was chosen to allow the wizarding community to learn about the Muggle world unlike ever before. Muggle Studies is not a popular elective and muggle-borns and half-borns have complained about the class being inaccurate or outdated. Some people thought that having a Muggle themed dance would give a more realistic account of Muggles.”

Mark had taken the class in his third year and it was underwhelming. There was no mention of the lives of Muggles rather the curriculum was surrounded by the technologies. The idea of a Muggle themed dance lingers throughout the rest of the evening. Not only would Mark easily understand the theme itself, but he could wear whatever he had without a thought. God, Mark wanted to wear his new denim jacket. Should he ask his mom to send him some more clothes?

Mark ends up voting the next morning at the corner of the Great Hall and moves on with his Saturday. He would never have called himself a meticulous student and yet, he was left with a free weekend. There was a sense of achievement that came with spare time. For once, Mark wasn’t procrastinating a project, essay, or whatever nonsense some Hogwarts teachers threw at him. He felt like a proper 5th year, who finally perfected their student lives. 

Now Mark can think of more interesting things. Hogsmeade was next week and he was running rather low on some candies and parchment already. His recent stock of ink was depleting at a rapid rate and the little amount of “Dragon Snot”, by far the best wax for letters, Mark had left from last year was not going to sustain him for much longer. But he didn’t have someone to go with yet.

Jaehyun had another one of his wizarding duels to attend that day. Johnny and Doyoung were busy with college. Mark could ask Daniel, but he was probably going to go with someone else. Mina would rather read books and sleep than go out. 

Yeri. Yeri didn’t have plans. 

They were partners in potions class and Yeri complimented him for being her first decent partner. Though she was sometimes too random, Mark was sure he would be able to have fun around her.

At lunch, Mark goes up to the Slytherin table. He has never been popular in Hogwarts, but he was well-liked enough. A few students, some in his classes and others Mark met at clubs, wave or greet him with smiles. Yeri agrees to his request easily, but he also catches the eyes of someone else at the table.

Mark has dealt with a few confessions since he first arrived at Hogwarts. (Johnny would disagree, but his ears weren’t as red as Jaehyun’s and he didn’t have any rights to judge him. Johnny wasn’t that good at it either.) With 5 years of experience, he has almost memorized how to let people down gently, but these weren’t the eyes of an admirer.

The boy looked his age, maybe a little younger. His mouth was twisted in the smallest scrunch and his eyes were nothing, but hot fury towards him.

“Mark Lee, right?”

Mark doesn’t gulp. Or at least he hopes he didn’t look like he gulped cause he probably tried to.

“What about it,” Mark tries lashing at him. 

The boy smashed his fist on the table, bringing eyes towards the Slytherin and immediately something wet and slimy is thrown at his face. Mark doesn’t move. He doesn’t tremble in anger. Instead, he stands completely still. What was going on?

Murmurs broke out right after his face was hit with the most viscous material he has ever touched. People offer to wipe it off for him and most ask if he was alright, but he doesn’t answer any of it.

“Donghyuck did it. He actually did it,” Someone almost squealed in astonishment over all the noise. More sounds break out after the revelation, but the name sticks instead of the chaos going around him.

Donghyuck? Mark didn’t know a Donghyuck. Who the hell is he and what did Mark do to him?

“I’m sorry Mark, but you had to be the example.”

Mark could hear Donghyuck was a little too close to his liking. Donghyuck's hands were picking out the weird goop on his neck and cloak, humming along to everyone else’s madness. When Mark can finally see, he finds himself staring at the Slytherin boy’s eyes.

Up close he was cuter, more like an innocent young child than anything. His hair was a chestnut brown, matching his fairly tan skin, and darker eyes. No matter how fairy-like he looked, his eyes were far away from him, shining from the afternoon sun, but dismissive of what was in front of him.

“It’s just some hagfish, water, and a sprinkle of magic dust. Your skin would be brighter now. You look like you need it if I were to be honest.”

“Why? Why did you do this to me?” Mark asks, mustering all the courage and intimidation he had in him. However, Donghyuck remains indifferent.

“It’s not that hard to understand, Gryffindor. You fifth, sixth, and seventh years all had to exclude us from your little party picking and…”

Donghyuck doesn’t get to finish his sentence. Teachers were now at the Great Hall and when they see the two facing each other, one with fowl spit all over his shirt, they drag the two boys to the headmaster’s office.

Mark doesn’t understand it all. Why someone would be so mad at something so minuscule? Did he have to get humiliated in front of everyone in the Great Hall? No. Did he have to go to the headmaster’s office and explain he didn’t know Donghyuck or why he was targeted? Also no. But there Mark was, desperately trying to explain to Headmaster Lee how little he knew of what was happening. He was just the victim of an underclassman’s rebellion.

“I didn’t know what was going on. I was going to ask my friend to go to Hogsmeade with me next week and then I saw him, looking at me,” Mark blurted with his finger toward the other boy. Together they sat in little velvet seats in front of the old Headmaster Lee, like little kids after a scuffle. “And then, something just hits my face.”

“Okay, okay. I admit I don' really know him,” Donghyuck abruptly says, bringing his hands up in surrender. Headmaster Lee’s eyebrow rises a little, but Donghyuck continues to go on.

“I needed to spread awareness about the struggle for the younger years. Also part of a dare.”

Mark can’t believe what Donghyuck said. “Why does this involve me? I’m not even a prefect. That’s Junghoon!”

Donghyuck shrugs and with vacant eyes he looks down at his nails, picking his cuticle. “You don’t look like you get mad and you are fairly famous in this school. An easy target overall.”

“Haechan.”

Donghyuck (Haechan?) flinches in his seat at the name and looks up at the headmaster. From the 10 minutes that Mark knew Donghyuck/Haechan, he looked anxious, nothing like the snotty little guy before.

“You know we have certain policies in Hogwarts,” Headmaster Lee said, his voice soft like an overbrushed feather, but holding its power like he was too great and wise to yell at him. 

The headmaster was powerful, probably more than anyone in this castle, but Mark always thought he had a weak demeanor. He was old, wrinkled skin, crooked back, and creaky bones, and every time Mark saw him, he wore a tight, tired smile. His hair was long, greasy, and the color of mulled silver, matching the dingy frame of his cloudy glasses that sat on his forehead more often than not. If Mark didn’t know the headmaster was one of the strongest wizards in the continent, he would’ve thought he was a lonely old librarian. Even his bird was an ordinary, boring crow.

Haechan nods with his eyes downcast. With his back bent in his seat and his hands under his thighs, Haechan looked far smaller than he was in the Great Hall. Mark feels a little bad for him. Just a little.

“We will have to message your parents if you pull another one of these stunts again. Understood?”

The younger boy continues to nod and wring out shallow replies. When the Headmaster sends them off, Haechan rises from his seat at once, bangs covering his eyes. Mark watches the younger push the door, disappearing behind the massive oak. He looks back at the headmaster to see the man staring at him, observing and calculating his every movement.

“You don’t know Haechan at all, huh?”

“I only met him today.”

Headmaster Lee doesn’t look angry. He never looked angry. His eyes were amused to watch Mark struggle to look him in the eye and the thin smile on his lips seem to be ready to tease him.

“I know you have great potential in this school, Mark, but remember to expand your horizons. I heard you turned down becoming a prefect? 

Mark blinks. “Um...does that matter right now?”

Headmaster Lee doesn’t elaborate further, shaking his head instead of explaining himself before changing the topic. “Donghyuck has hit you with a silly concoction under some sort of rebellion, you say?”

Donghyuck? His name was Donghyuck. Then what was Haechan?

“That what he said to me, sir.”

“What reason was it exactly? The boy always has some reason to act.”

The Headmaster looks amused than vengeful and apparates a quill into his hand. A piece of paper flutters before him, beckoning Mark to speak.

“Well, the prefects are planning a student-run dance and they kinda only invited 5th years and older.”

“Is that it?”

“That is all I remember, sir.”

Headmaster Lee’s eyes gleam at him, looking over his posture once more. He takes a deep breath and his thick fingers drop his quill on parchment before disappearing in a small burst of light. He rolls up the scroll and hands it to Mark.

“Since it is the weekend, you won’t require any notices, but please send this to one of the prefects. I am afraid we are going to have a rebellion on our hands if they don’t fix up this mess. I also left a little task for you to do, but you will be notified on Monday when classes resume.”

The older man bids Mark a nice day and he slips out of the office, shaking less than before.

“You are such an idiot.”

Mark knew that voice and the more he hears it, the more the high tone slips under his skin.

“How am I an idiot?”

Mark found it hard to be angry and intimidating. For a Gryffindor, he didn’t look much tougher than an alley cat and his emotions were so tightly strung together with an awkward string that Mark usually avoided anything that triggered his temper. But, it seems Donghyuck was inevitable.

“You didn’t have to make such a big fuss about it. I would’ve shown my point and we would all go on our merry way,” Donghyuck punctuates with a loud sigh.

“But why should I be fine with having slime all over me?”

“Because it’s not harmful or irritating. I could’ve used beetle juice or mala mujer.”

“Why would you--Never mind. Let’s just call it a day. Okay. Let’s just drop it.”

Then, Mark dashes away from the boy further and further until his lungs were burning and his legs were the mysterious glowing jelly Hogwarts surprised people with on Christmas. Donghyuck wasn’t behind him and Mark didn’t hear any footsteps coming towards him. The floor was entirely quiet except for his ragged breaths. Mark slumps down by the wall, his eyes closed as his breath finally steadies. Donghyuck must be judging him right now, Mark thinks as he walks down the stairs. But that didn’t matter. He didn’t matter. Not at all. 

* * *

The next day, Mark was in the Great Hall, his bowl of cereal getting more soggy with each second as he looks over to the Slytherin table. Mark wasn’t a stalker. They were just far too loud and Donghyuck just happened to be the center of it, stealing his attention as easily as flipping a page in a book. 

Mark noticed the students sitting by him were his age or at least looked like it. Donghyuck was pinching a Ravenclaw boy with crescents for eyes while the two others dotingly watch the two bicker and eat their food normally. Donghyuck’s laugh was loud as the other boy tries to pinch him back, clear as metal chimes. The other Slytherin boy tells him to shut up and Donghyuck retaliates by sticking his tongue out. His friends burst out laughing and before Mark could act natural, Donghyuck was running towards the Gryffindor table with the Slytherin boy at his tails. 

Mark sees the younger’s eyes, amber brown in the morning sun, but when Donghyuck catches him, Mark looks away. It didn’t matter though. The moment passes fast. Donghyuck ran right by his table in less than a second and the Hufflepuff boy that was yelling at both of them to stop before now had Donghyuck in a chokehold as the other two laugh at the boy’s thrashing. 

What a strange group of friends, Mark thinks, mixing his near homogenous cereal together. 

Everything changed (not when the fire nation attacked, but) after classes. Mark finds a letter on the desk, no bigger than his palm, but for some reason his stomach sinks as he opens it.

_Dear Mr. Lee, Mark Lee, _

_We have determined your punishment with Donghyuck Lee for the stunt in the Great Hall on the previous Saturday. Slytherin will be deducted points for Mr. Donghyuck Lee’s stunt on Mr. Mark Lee. However, both will come to visit Ms. Kim’s office every day until October for supplementary lessons. They will be completely private and will focus on teamwork building, emotional control, and magical abilities. Ms. Kim will be expecting you…_

At the back of the parchment was a timer, ticking down. Right now he had…

“Mark Lee. Haechan. I expected both of you to be on time. A couple of minutes off is still late. Five points off both Gryffindor and Slytherin.”

Mark can tell Donghyuck could care less. Donghyuck was already rolling his eyes when he saw Mark running towards the door. He was walking, almost at a snail’s pace, towards Mark and instead of entering the office nearly thirty minutes late, he pulled on Mark’s robes and dragged Mark with him.

Ms. Kim didn’t care about excuses so the punishment goes further from a few points off their houses.

“Teamwork building is...replacing candles?”

Ms. Kim nods and passes the boxes of candles into Mark’s hands. “The both of you will replace all the quartered candles on the first floor with new ones and put the old ones into the boxes.”

“Isn’t this just work,” Haechan sighs as he picks up more candles.

Ms. Kim smiles in the creepy wolf-ish way she always did. “Of course. It is a punishment, not some fun blind date.” 

Somehow, Mark finds himself in their first classroom, standing on one of the desks, and struggling to reach the floating candles. Donghyuck was sitting down, head on the desk, as he watches Mark stretch his arms out for the candle. Mark was the taller of the two and Donghyuck had a whole speech about how Gryffindor students had to be brave so the task fits Mark better than himself.

Though Mark was sure there was a spell to undo whatever charm was on these candles, he didn’t know of it and Donghyuck doesn’t seem to be in the mood to research. Donghyuck was oddly quiet around Mark. He was fine before, but now he seemed like he was in a place even more isolated than Hogwarts. Mark was tempted to ask him for help. Like maybe look for a spell or ask for a ladder. Mark was sure that Donghyuck was going to tell him to shut up or go look for it himself, but as Donghyuck said, Gryffindors had to be brave. 

“Do you know a spell that can make this go any faster?”

After Mark speaks, the entire world quiets. None of them say another word and not even the fleeing birds outside call out to each other. Only the scent of warm wax and the rest of the aging classroom tingled Mark’s senses. This was surprising to Mark. From what Mark knows of the Slytherin 4th year, Donghyuck was never quiet and still. His entire personality was so lively and bright in the Great Hall when he was with his friends, but now, in front of Mark, he was like a rock.

Mark turns around from Donghyuck and tilts his head back towards the candles above him, reaching out for them again. Maybe he expected too much of people. Like the time he hoped Ms. Kim would let him keep the transfigured dog instead of turning it back into a clay vase. Even Johnny, the previous Head Boy, offered to plan out an escape--

“We can find a counter charm to the candles. I think there might be one in a textbook somewhere.”

Mark jumps a little, his feet an inch off the desk before standing again. His arms flail for a second and his back is bending before he springs back forwards. For some reason, Donghyuck giggles at the sight. The tension leaves the younger’s shoulders and he stands up from his seat. He walks towards where Mark was standing and ushers Mark to get back down.

“Do you remember Surgito?”

Mark nearly trips again. How did he not think of that? Immediately, they start shout Surgito at the candles. They catch them as they fall into their hands and put them into a few of the emptier boxes.

“Whoever finishes their boxes will have to carry the boxes for the rest of the time?” 

Mark is taken by surprise once more, but turns his head around and smirks at the already grinning Donghyuck. “You’re on.”

Mark knew competitiveness well enough. Jaehyun and Yuta never liked losing so he was already conditioned in accepting defeat. Still, Donghyuck was different. He thought outside of the box, distracting Mark with little tricks and hand movements instead of devoting all his energy into the task. He was even faster than Mark too so with his superior agility and brainpower, Donghyuck gloated about his win for the rest of their punishment.

At least, Donghyuck was smiling now, Mark tries to reassure himself as Donghyuck pokes his cheek, laughter bubbling out of him like a faulty potion.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos if you enjoyed it and feedback is always appreciated!
> 
> :)


End file.
